Do Linguistic Features Influence Item Difficulty in Physics Assessments?

Höttecke, Dietmar; Feser, Markus Sebastian; Heine, Lena; Ehmke, Timo

doi:10.18452/19188

Cited by 4 publications

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“…Similarly, Jaeger and Müller (2019) show that linguistically mediated difficulty (varied through readability index) in solving physics tasks has only marginal significance mediated through cognitive load. Experimental studies systematically examining linguistic properties of test items with regard to difficulty show inconsistent findings (Kieffer et al, 2009;Höttecke, Feser, Heine & Ehmke, 2018). Hackemann (2023) concludes in his recent research overview that only small effects of linguistic complexity on text comprehension and students' task performance can be identified.…”

Section: Factors Influencing Difficulty Of Tasks In Assessmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Difficulty-Generating Features of Text-based Physics Tasks

Schwippert,

Zilz,

Hoettecke

2024

Journal of Research in Science, Mathematics and Technology Education

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Influencing the difficulty of performance tasks is of great interest in science education as in several other subjects. In the context of the VAMPS project, difficulty-generating features with respect to the cognitive demand of text-based physics tasks were systematically varied at three levels. Based on preliminary work and two pilot studies presented here briefly, a model was developed by which cognitive requirement was varied according to three features. The viability of this model was empirically tested with a sample of n = 414 secondary school students. The feature cognitive activity proved to be a significant factor influencing the empirically measured difficulty of tasks. With the help of the feature number of information obtained from task stem and number of subject-specific mental procedures, no systematic influence on task difficulty could be shown. The influence of the test persons’ individual prior knowledge on the actual task difficulty is generally assumed to be a confounding factor. Overall, the present study contributes to a better understanding of construct representation in assessments of subject-specific proficiency and empirically confirms that a systematic variation of the task feature cognitive activity on three levels affects task difficulty

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Section: Factors Influencing Difficulty Of Tasks In Assessmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Difficulty-Generating Features of Text-based Physics Tasks

Schwippert,

Zilz,

Hoettecke

2024

Journal of Research in Science, Mathematics and Technology Education

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“…This study compares a high school physics textbook and a college introductory physics textbook using certain methods of quantitative linguistic analysis. Prior studies analyzing physics texts linguistically or quantitatively used several types of methodology such as categorizing narratives quantitatively [13], analyzing the frequency and collocation of words in texts [14], analyzing the grammatical characteristics of sentences in science texts [15,16], analyzing the readability of physics assessment items [17], analyzing the text characteristics of physics texts by network analysis [18], and comparing physics texts and discourse of physics teachers in classrooms by using a text network analysis method [19]. [20] explored the various quantitative analysis results of the texts in a 'force' unit and suggested teaching strategies for using them.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Language gap between college introductory physics textbooks and high school physics textbooks

Eunjeong¹

2020

Eur. J. Phys.

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This study investigates the extent of the difficulty faced by college students taking an introductory physics class by comparing linguistic differences in terminology between a high school physics textbook and a college introductory physics textbook. In addition, it explores new linguistic expressions used to teach introductory physics in college, which specifically lead to information on the content and expressions that students are familiar with as well as new content and expressions. This information can be utilized to formulate teaching strategies. Text from the chapters on ‘force’ is extracted from a high school physics textbook and a college introductory physics textbook. The text was studied in terms of word frequency analysis, N-gram analysis, keyword analysis, and network analysis. Results indicate that about 70% of the text in the college introductory physics textbook had new words not used in the high school physics textbook, and these words were used to elaborate on the content covered in high school. In introductory physics, a large number of words are interconnected in complex relationships. However, from an educational viewpoint, since the relationship between these words is not explicitly shown and not used often in the textbook, students may find it difficult to understand the content. This study inferred students’ prior knowledge of physics by examining the linguistic expressions central to high school textbooks. The results suggest that when teaching introductory physics in college, it is necessary to consider the content or expressions that students are familiar with and those that they are unfamiliar with.

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Physics Tasks

Fischer

Kauertz

2021

Physics Education

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Do Linguistic Features Influence Item Difficulty in Physics Assessments?

Cited by 4 publications

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Difficulty-Generating Features of Text-based Physics Tasks

Difficulty-Generating Features of Text-based Physics Tasks

Language gap between college introductory physics textbooks and high school physics textbooks

Physics Tasks

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